Wednesday, March 30, 2011

"Wood appears as a portrait of the artist as a young Goth, albeit in high style—it’s a look that might be described as insane punk elegance. The severe black military jacket is, naturally, by Chanel, the bag by Miu Miu. Her iridescent red hair has been sublimated into two architecturally vertical, gravity-defiant ponytails; a smudge of kohl and bronze offer graphic contrast to Wood’s curiously opaque hazel eyes and alabaster skin; the dangerously spiky heels hanging off her feet look both stripper-ready and expensive. The overall effect makes her appear as an exotic manga character..."

-Matt Diehl for Black Book

I'm really going to geek-out as a writer here. What inspired me to become a writer was my boredom with different magazines all printing basically the same story about an artist or a band. Every once in a while, a good profile keeps me on my toes and inspires me. One constant has been Luke Crisell's work in Nylon (I recently realized that I've admired his work since I was thirteen). This profile of a very interesting young actress, Evan Rachel Wood, is now on my list of favorites. Matt Diehl painted a picture of the complex starlet. He peppered the article with semi-obscure literary references, and impressed me with the clever verb tense used in the above quote: "gravity defiant," not gravity defying. Little tweaks like this keep me on my toes as a reader, and stay in my mind when I am writing. More than anything, Diehl didn't seek to expose scandal in Wood's life; instead, he told her story. Well done Matt Diehl, well done.

See more beautiful photos by Andrew MacPherson and read the entire article HERE.I have to mention that I love the photos as much as the profiile. MacPherson captured a very grown up, spectacularly beautiful Wood. The photos have the aura of a classic film starlet.